Surgical drainage tube having removable liners

ABSTRACT

A SURGICAL DRAINAGE TUBE HAS A TUBULAR OUTER WALL AND A TUBULAR LINING FRICTIONALLY ENGAGING THE INNER SURFACE OF THAT WALL. IF THE TUBE BECOMES OBSTRUCTED BY BLOOD CLOTS INSIDE THE LINING, THE LINING TUBE CAN BE POULLED OUT OF ONE END OF THE TUBULAR OUTER WALL TO REMOVE THE CLOTS.

Nov. 23, 1971 .4; M'AGOVERN 3,621,848

SURGICAL DRAINAGE TUBE HAVING REMOVABLE LINERS Filed Nov. 1'7, 1969 lz ua u aqtezea Fig. 2

INVIBNTOR. GEORGE J. MAGOVER/V ATTORNEVS United States Patent Mom-mm.

ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE A surgical drainage tube has a tubular outerwall and a tubular lining frictionally engaging the inner surface ofthat wall. If the tube becomes obstructed by blood clots inside thelining, the lining tube can be pulled out of one end of the tubularouter wall to remove the clots.

Surgical operations often require that a drainage tube be inserted inthe incision so that blood can drain from it until internal bleedingstops. When blood stops draining from the tube it generally is assumedthat the bleeding has stopped, but this may be a false assumption.Actually, drainage may have stopped because blood clots formed in thetube and obstructed it. To make sure of the existing situation, the tubeshould be removed from the patient and inspected and if found to beobstructed it either should be cleaned out and replaced, or anotherdrainage tube substituted for it. The reinsertion of a drainage tube issomething that it is desirable to avoid if possible.

It is among the objects of this invention to provide a surgical drainagetube which can be checked for obstructions without removing it from thepatient, and which can be freed of any obstructions quickly and easilyin a simple manner.

The invention is illustrated in the accompanying drawing, in which FIG.1 represents a side view of a drainage tube extending out of a surgicalpatients body;

FIG. 2 is an enlarged fragmentary side view of the tube broken away insection to show its internal construction;

FIG. 3 is a fragmentary side view, partly in section, showing anobstruction being removed; and

FIG. 4 is a similar view of a modification.

Referring to FIGS. 1 and 2 of the drawing, after a patient undergoes anoperation, such as chest surgery for example, a drainage tube 1 may beinserted in the operated area 2 and extend out of the patients bodythrough the incision. Any internal bleeding will be carried away throughthe drainage tube, which usually is flexible. It is a feature of thisinvention that if the tube becomes obstructed by a blood clot, the clotcan be removed quickly without pulling the tube out of the inc1s1on.

Accordingly, the drainage tube has a tubular outer wall 3 that may bemade in the usual way from any suitable material. Usually it will berubber or a synthetic plastic. Instead of using such a tubular memberalone as has been the practice heretofore, it is lined with one or moretubular linings. Two linings 4 and 5 are shown in the drawing, but therecould be more. They snugly engage each other and the inner surface ofthe tubular wall to form the drainage tube, with which all drainage willbe confined to the inside of the inner lining 5. The linings are made asthin as possible, paper thin for example, so that the tube can beprovided with a passage of the desired size without having to make thetube too large. Here again rubber or a plastic can be used for thelinings.

The linings project from at least the outer end of the tubular outerwall 3. If they project from both ends, then 3,621,848 Patented Nov. 23,I971 it is immaterial which end of the tube is implanted in the patient.The inner lining 5 also projects from the outer lining. The length ofeach projection is such that the ends of the tubular linings can begripped by tweezers or forceps to pull them.

Assuming that blood stops draining from the tube shown in FIG. 1, thesurgeon will not know for sure whether bleeding has stopped or whetherthe tube has been obstructed. With this invention, he will grip theprojecting outer end of the inner lining 5 and pull it out of theencircling lining 4, as shown in FIG. 3, and discard it. During thisoperation the projecting end of the outer lining can be held in thefingers lightly so that it will not move out with the inner lining, ifit might otherwise tend to do so. Any blood clot 6 or other obstructionin the drainage tube will be inside the inner lining and therefore willbe removed with it, leaving the drainage tube open again so thatdraining can resume through the passage in the remaining lining 4. Ifthe surgeon should find no obstruction in the removed lining, he willknow that bleeding had stopped and he then can remove the drainage tubefrom the patient.

On the other hand, if the tube had been obstructed by a blood clotwhich, when removed, permitted the tube to start draining again, and iflater on draining stops again, outer lining 4 can be pulled out oftubular member 3 to again check on the tube and to remove any blood clotthat may be obstructing it. Removal of both linings is accomplishedwithout disturbing the outer wall 3 of the drainage tube, so the patientis not subjected to the discomfort of having the tube removed and thenreinserted.

The tubular linings shown in FIGS. 2 and 3 are seamless tubes but, asshown in FIG. 4, a lining can be made in a different way. Thisparticular lining 8 is formed like a soda straw, from a helically woundstrip, the edges of the convolutions of which engage one another and arejoined together. When the projecting end of the lining is pulled toremove the lining from the outer tubular member 9, the convolutionsseparate from one another progressively so that the lining is removedmore as a strip than as a tube. This drainage tube may include two ormore concentric linings if desired.

I claim:

1. A surgical drainage tube having a tubular outer wall and a snuglyfitting tubular lining frictionally engaging the inner surface of saidwall, said lining being formed from a helically wound strip formingconvolutions joined together at their edges, and the lining beingremovable lengthwise from one end of said tubular outer wall by pullingon the end of said strip to cause the convolutions to separate from oneanother progressively, whereby to remove from the tube any blood clotsobstructing the tube.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,531,213 3/1925 Nimmer 1282392,290,571 7/1942 Peyton 128-348 X 3,089,493 5/1963 Galindo l28-2833,263,684 8/1966 Bolton 128351 3,384,089 5/1968 Shriner 128350 3,457,9207/1969 Thompson l28188 FOREIGN PATENTS 258,116 3/1913 Germany 128-350 RDALTON L. TRULUCK, Primary Examiner US. Cl. X.R. 128--239

